4 year old son Andrew

[meggie535]

I have a four year old son named Andrew. He is very delayed in speach. I would compare his level of speaking possibly with a 2 1/2 year old. At about 2 years is when we started noticing that he wasn't speaking....at the time it was only mama and dad. And we also noticed he would make lines on the playroom floor with books and cars and would become angry if we picked them up, he also wouldn't play with the kids in the family instead be off playing alone. Within the past year he has been improving, now showing interest in other kids and trying to speak more often. I am in the process of having him evaluated by the school board, but it is a long process and we haven't got anywhere yet. The phsycologist said she did see signs of autism in him, but with preschool she thinks he would improve greatly. I am very concerned due to the fact he is suppose to start kinder this coming year, I don't know if I should hold him back a year or let him start knowing he isn't at the level he should be and risking them wanting to put him in special ed. Please if you have any advice to offer I would greatly appreciate it.

[melanie223]

Oh my..I am reading about your 4yr old boy Andrew, and this is the same thing we went through with our son  Andrew who is now 31/2.  He was born typical and healthy, almost advanced. He was almost 2 when he got his MMR shot, and everything went downhill from there.  He stopped talking, making eye contact, started lining things up like blocks or cars ( long lines ) and hardly ever responded to his name anymore.  He also would make strange noises when playing on his own, and if we had our young cousins or his friends over he acted as if they were invisible.  We were devestated to learn from a pediatric specialist that he was indeed on the autism spectrum diagnosed with PDD.  Of course he recommended ABA, and VBA which we definitly did not do..and we had him evaluated with early intervention and he got that for a yr. since he was 2..and now he goes to a special preschool.  The preschools for special needs are okay..but will not help him if he is autistic...so what we are also doing is RDI on the side which we pay for (not very expensive).  When Andrew was in EI his special intruction teacher happened to specialize in autism and RDI..and we learned sooooo much from her, and I will pass this on to as many families as I can.  RDI is relationship development intervention and seems to me to be the only option that can greatly improve and in most cases help children recover from autism.  The schools will teach him skills, help him go to the potty, etc, but it will not help his autism.  Basically the only thing my son gets out of preschool is he goes to the potty now, and loves the guy who comes in with his guitar and sings, and likes to play with the children..but the social interaction piece was gained back with our work at home and using RDI.  I don't know if your son will still line things up, or get mad if you move them..but if so you know in autism other things come with that like ocd.  RDI will also help with that, we were constantly changing things up because autistic children are afraid of the unknown, and don't know what people expect of them and therefore only want things the way they want them, and usually has to have it the same way all of the time.

[tejodouro]

First, why is the school not evaluating him in a timely manner? If you live the USA, at least in California, they have 60 days (I think / please double check) to do their job.  If he is delayed in speech and social skills, he should already be in speech therapy and social skills classes.  If he has any form of PDD or autism, the earlier you start him with intervention classes and therapies, the better he is going to do long run.  So, you need to be your son's advocate and push the School District to evaluate him soon and provide the services that this child needs, assuming you can not afford to provide them on your own for a lack of insurance.  In California, K begins when the child turns 5 by December of the year that he or she starts K.  Even with normal boys, where I live, most moms hold their boys back one year if they are born after June 1.  So, I think that you probably should hold him back and get him into the therapies that he needs.  You need to be his advocate and ask / push for the help that he needs. If you hold him back one year and he still has to go into a special ed class, that is not the end of the world.  He will get the help that he needs in special ed.   You do not want him in a regular class if he does not belong there because he will be frustrated if he can not keep up with his peers or the teacher's instructions. Good luck.